Ablative case

Ablative Case

The ablative case is a grammatical case used in some languages, including various Indo-European languages, Uralic languages, and others. This case is typically used to express motion away from something, although its precise meaning can vary between languages.

Etymology

The term "ablative" originates from the Latin term ablativus, which means "carrying away". This is a reference to the primary function of the ablative case in Latin, which is to indicate movement away from a location.

Usage in Different Languages

Latin

In Latin, the ablative case is used in a variety of contexts. It can indicate motion away from a place, the means or instrument with which an action is performed, the manner of an action, the cause of an action, and more. For example, in the sentence "Puer ex urbe venit" ("The boy comes from the city"), "urbe" is in the ablative case.

Finnish

Finnish, a Uralic language, also uses the ablative case, although its usage is somewhat different from Latin. In Finnish, the ablative case typically indicates the means or instrument of an action, similar to one of its uses in Latin. However, it can also indicate the location from which an action originates, similar to the Latin usage.

Comparison with Other Cases

The ablative case is similar to the dative case and the genitive case in that it can indicate the indirect object of a verb. However, the ablative case is unique in its ability to express motion away from something.

See Also

• Grammatical case
• Dative case
• Genitive case
• Latin grammar
• Finnish grammar